Largo, largo |

Italian, lit. – widely

The designation of a slow tempo, often indicating a certain nature of the music. It is usually used in production. majestic, solemn, mournful character, distinguished by a wide, measured deployment of muses. fabrics, emphatically weighty, full-sounding chordal complexes. The term is known from the beginning. 17th century At that time, it meant a calm, moderate pace and was put down with plays performed in the rhythm of the sarabande. From the beginning 18th century understanding of the term has changed. In the music theories of this time, largo was often seen as a very slow tempo, twice as slow as adagio. In practice, however, the relationship between largo and adagio was not firmly established; often largo differed from adagio not so much in tempo as in the nature of the sound. In certain cases, largo came close to the designation andante molto cantabile. In the symphonies of J. Haydn and W. A. ​​Mozart, the designation “Largo” indicates, first of all, an underlined accent. L. Beethoven interpreted largo as a “weighted” adagio. Often he combined the term “largo” with clarifying definitions that emphasize the pathos of sound: Largo appassionato in the sonata for piano. op. 2, Largo con gran espressione in sonata for piano. op. 7 etc.

L. M. Ginzburg